Care Home Fee Complaints Scotland: Stage 1, Stage 2 and Escalating to the SPSO

When to Use the Complaints Process

The Social Work Complaints Handling Procedure exists for disputes about care funding decisions, the financial assessment, the care needs assessment, or the quality of council-arranged care services. It's the route when you believe the council got something wrong — not when you're unhappy with a care home provider directly (that goes through the Care Inspectorate).

Common triggers include: the council assessed your parent's capital or income incorrectly, the property disregard wasn't applied when it should have been, the care needs assessment underestimated your parent's needs, or the council failed to explain whether your parent met the Deferred Payment Agreement criteria.

Stage 1: Frontline Resolution

Stage 1 is designed for straightforward complaints that can be resolved quickly. The council must resolve the complaint within 5 working days. In complex social work cases, this can be extended by up to 10 working days (or 5 working days in integrated NHS/HSCP structures) — but only with your agreement.

Submit your complaint in writing rather than by phone. Written complaints create a paper trail and force the council to provide a written response. Include:

• What decision or action you're challenging
• Why you believe it's wrong (cite specific rules — capital limits, property disregards, pension assignment, FPC/FNC entitlement)
• What outcome you want (reassessment, backdated payment, specific disregard applied)

The council can resolve Stage 1 by agreeing to reassess, correcting a calculation error, or applying a disregard that was missed. If they uphold the original decision, they must explain why in writing.

Stage 2: Formal Investigation

If Stage 1 doesn't resolve the complaint, you can escalate to Stage 2 within 6 months of receiving the Stage 1 response. Stage 2 is a formal investigation conducted by a senior officer who wasn't involved in the original decision.

The council must acknowledge your Stage 2 complaint within 3 working days and issue a detailed written decision within 20 working days. The investigating officer reviews the original assessment, the evidence you've provided, and the relevant legislation and guidance.

Stage 2 responses tend to be more thorough and more useful than Stage 1. They typically explain the council's interpretation of CRAG guidance and identify whether procedures were followed correctly. If the investigation finds an error, the council should offer a remedy — recalculation, backdated refund, or a new assessment.

Escalating to the SPSO

If you've been through both Stage 1 and Stage 2 and remain dissatisfied, you can take the complaint to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). The deadline is 12 months from the date of the council's final Stage 2 response.

The SPSO is independent of the council and has the authority to investigate whether the council acted in line with its statutory duties, followed its own procedures, and applied the law correctly. The Ombudsman can recommend that the council:

• Reassess the case using correct criteria
• Pay compensation for financial loss caused by errors
• Change its procedures to prevent the same mistake affecting other families
• Issue an apology

SPSO recommendations aren't legally binding in the way a court order is, but councils comply with them in the vast majority of cases. An adverse SPSO finding is a public record and carries reputational consequences.

What Makes a Strong Complaint

The complaints process works best when you're specific about what rule was broken and can point to evidence. Vague dissatisfaction ("the assessment feels unfair") is harder to act on than a targeted challenge ("the 50% spouse pension disregard under CRAG was not applied to my father's occupational pension, reducing his assessed contribution by £X per week").

Keep copies of every document submitted during the financial assessment, every letter from the council, and notes of any phone conversations with dates and the name of the person you spoke to. If the council provided verbal advice that contradicted written guidance, document that discrepancy.

Separately: The Care Fees Review

Beyond the complaints process, you can request a reassessment of the financial contribution at any time if your parent's circumstances change — savings depleted below a threshold, pension income changed, a spouse moved out of or into the property. A reassessment isn't a complaint; it's a routine administrative process that any resident or their attorney can initiate.

For template letters covering both the complaints process and reassessment requests, the Scotland Care Funding Guide includes pre-drafted correspondence for each stage.

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